Forbidden Pasts
by Shadowtails13
Summary: It's been three years since Oogie was killed, and Lock, Shock, and Barrel set off to discover how they died and their past. Rating subject to change


Forbidden Pasts:

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Yet another fan fiction... I just hope this one is read, well, this one is serious though... and my serious stuff normally gets read, like _Stranded_. Oh yeh, this Fanfic is based off of Tim Burton's A Nightmare Before Christmas, around Lock, Shock, and Barrel. An' that's it...

Yay.

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Chapter One:

It's been three years... three years since Oogie abducted Sandy Claws. Three Years since Jack supposedly finished him off. Three years which Jack has returned, celebrated as a hero. Nobody gave the thought much matter to what happened to Lock, Shock, and Barrel, Oogie's three children to do his dirty work. Everyone just left the trio to live alone in their tree house. Life has been lonely and boring for them (despite the occasional thieveries through Halloweentowns' markets to restock on food.)

True, Lock, Shock, and Barrel grown through the three years. Shock is fifteen, Lock fourteen, and Barrel twelve now. the trio, managed to restitch Oogie, who (after being massacred by Jack) gave up on ruling Halloween Town, and stayed in his casino dungeon, where Lock sent food down (normally insects or small mammals) every once in a while. The tree house has rotten through the years, leaving it tilted and grated, the outside was just as putrid as the inside too. Most of Lock, Shock, and Barrels weapons were rusty, and the furniture more battered than usual.

It was on September 28, where this story starts. Lock was on the top floor of the tree house, lying down on a hard wooden bunk bed, watching the thick rain hammer against the window, blotching out the shadowy moon. He could faintly hear the Halloween Town residents clamoring about, trying to perfect this years Halloween. Lock yearned to join them, his life was spent with Shock and Barrel, and he was distressed about being so lonesome.

Lock began to rub his temples, and stretched. He began to wonder why he's been with Oogie so long, he has planned on leaving him and starting a life of his own for some time now... He had so many questions, it was killing him. Why was he sent here when he died, instead of Heaven or Hell like everyone else. Where is his real family, when he was alive, he didn't even know his own real name.

Lock groaned, and walked across the room to a inadequately made sink, and made himself a glass of water. He layed back down again, and ran his fingers through his dark red hair, and thought about going to sleep. He felt his eyes sag down, but stammered back into consciousness when Shock and Barrel walked into the room.

"Lock, Oogie's hungry, mind helping us with the stew?" Barrel asked, taking a lick at the lollypop he always keeps a good stock of. Lock shifted into a sitting position.

"Sure..." Lock began to get off the bed, when Shock stopped him.

"You feeling okay, you've been acting weird for a while now. Mind telling what's bothering you?" shock asked, sitting on the bunk under Locks.

Lock questioned whether to ask, wondering if it would make him look weak, and he really didn't want to upset Shock or Barrel. He mentally slapped himself, remembering that they were his best (and only) friends.

"Well... Shock, I've been thinking, we've been here, Halloween town, for awhile right? It's just... don't you ever wonder about our life before we died? Like... why we were sent to the Holiday dimension instead of Heaven, or who our folks were? Or even what our real names where?" He asked Shock, who seemed somewhat dumbfounded.

"Hmm... well... we were hit by the truck that finished us while I was... six or seven, but I don't remember much, and I'm clueless on our names, but since Oogie renamed us to fit the Halloween Town spirit, but they are still based on our real names, so they must be similar." Shock explained, sharpening of her rusty scythes, "Why aren't we in Heaven, I don't know, why are you asking?"

Lock sighed, "I just... don't know why we're here, the main town hates us, and the only person who could come close to accepting us is Oogie, a lowlife, gambler obsessee. I just wonder how things were when we were... alive." Lock said, drinking down the last drop of water.

"Well, we're here, besides, I like the jobs Oogie gives us, plus, there isn't a way we could possibly get any of the answers, so asking why is pointless. Just live the death that you have." Barrel said, throwing some darts at a termite-ridden dartboard against the wall.

"I suppose you're right. It's kind of upsetting though..." Lock murmured.

"Hey! You kids done with the stew!?" Oogie called up, the kids could here him rolling dice in the Casino.

"Oh, guess we should get going, Lock, mind getting the serpents for the stew?" Shock asked. Lock shrugged, and walked over to grab a few spears and knives on the way out (just in case).

'_I hate it when he gets like this, he seems gloomier every day...' _Barrel thought, turning to leave with Shock.

Lock jumped out of the tree house from the cage. He positioned his mask over his face, and took off into the night.

"Hmm... there must be some snakes in the Pumpkin Patch, near the woods." Lock said to himself. He exited the graveyard into the Pumpkin Patch, with the largest Jack-o'-Lantern that always seems to be gleaming at you. Lock ignored it, and kept walking through the long, eerie patch.

After a few minutes, Lock reached the end, near the forest. He waited by one of the rotten pumpkins, where he heard some hissing. The moment he saw a little nose, he snatched the snake up, and slammed its head against the wooden gate. He put the lifeless snake in his back pocket. It took him about a half hour too get enough, and started to turn to leave when.

"Hush Zero, don't be so loud, you'll wake Behemoth!" Lock heard a sharp whisper in the forest.

_'That was Jack's voice!? What is he doing in the forest when everyone else is in the town making preparations? Sounds suspicious...' _Lock thought. '_I should probably follow him, see what he's doing.' _Then Lock remembered Oogie's warning about staying out of the forest, at least not without Shock and Barrel. Lock knew he shouldn't have gone past the gate to the forest, but before he knew what he was doing, he was already creeping through the woods, his scythe held tightly in his hand.

'_I'm getting closer, I can hear Jack's footsteps.' _He thought. Unluckily for him, the forest echoes. Jack was still over a mile away. Lock followed the sound of Jack's footsteps for almost an hour. By then he was tired, and hungry. But his curiosity overpowered his weakness. And he kept on.

By now Lock's clothes were torn by the living bramble thorns, who found swinging some thorny vines at him funny, and Lock could see his feet bleeding through the holes that developed in his shoes. "I can't go on much longer, Shock and Barrel must be worried by now." But he stopped.

Just around the corner, he saw Jack. His ectoplasmic dog, Zero, traveling behind him, playfully nipping at his heels. Lock jumped behind the tree, looking beside the tree to examine what Jack was doing.

"Oh Zero, I shouldn't do this... I should wait like everyone else, but I always wanted to know what 'their' world is like without our holidays, just once." Jack said to Zero, patting his head, "Now Zero, wait for me for when I get back o- Zero?"

Zero was now turned toward the tree Lock was behind, Zero caught Lock's scent! Lock froze in fear. Zero was barking loudly at it. Jack looked at the tree suspiciously.

"Who's there! Tell me!" He demanded, with extra strength behind his voice.

'Crap, I'm caught! What to do!?' Lock frantically thought, as he heard Jack beginning to step toward the tree. 'YES!' Lock thought, as he hatched an idea. He reached in his back pocket, and tossed a dead snake beside the tree.

Jack smiled, "Zero, it was only a snake, why were you afraid of something as sweet as a snake? Now wait for me, okay?" Jack said, patting a still upset Zero, and walking around the next corner, where Lock followed.

Lock gasped at the next place. The darkness of the forest disappeared into bright sunshine. There Lock saw six beautiful trees with leaves of gold. On one tree, there was jack-o-lantern, the next a four leaf clover, a painted egg, a turkey, a pink heart, and a beautiful tree shimmering with golden ornaments. Each picture, Lock realized, had a knob, they were doors.

What surprised Lock though, was that Jack didn't seem surprised at all, he kept walking pass the holiday trees, to a gigantic maple tree. It's roots alone were taller than Lock. The tree was a bit shadier than the other trees, the leaves a darker shade of gold. On the tree, was a nailed sign that read: _Their World. _

"Well, I hope this works like last time." Jack said, and he walked straight into the tree. Lock waited for the thunk of Jack smacking into it headfirst, but didn't. Jack disappeared through the tree, with a burst of blue light. Lock stared in amazement.

"What is going on? How is it that he walked to the tree? Should I... follow him?" Lock asked himself. "No, that's rubbish, how would I come back? What if something horrible waits inside... But ..." Lock smirked.

Lock decided, he was going in.

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_I'm figgity figgity finished with that chapter. Please Review_

_PS: I know Lock had the spotlight for this chappie, sorry, Shack and Barrel come into the picture later._


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